About Writing Queen

Mary Campbell is the author or coauthor of six books and has ghosted or edited dozens more. She sells lots of neat stuff on her website—the joy is free. She loves to meditate (see meditation web pages) but wonders if it’s just an excuse to take a nap.

Favorite all-time movie: The Great Escape. Hmmm….

Favorite musicians: Dave Grusin, James Taylor, Alison Krauss, the Irish Rovers, Patti Labelle, Ry Cooder, Billy Dean, Garth Brooks (“The Dance,” “Callin’ Baton Rouge”), Bonnie Raitt, Keb’ Mo’….

Favorite composers: Elmer Bernstein, George Gershwin, Johannes Brahms, Dieterich Buxtehude, Felix Mendelssohn, Arcangelo Corelli, Aaron Copland (whom she once sat beside at dinner), Ralph Vaughn Williams, Rick Kuethe, Hobart Smith, and Haydn, Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven, as well as Thomas Tallis and William Byrd. And Duke Ellington, Vince Guaraldi, Mike Post, and whoever wrote the music for Dances with Wolves and The Last of the Mohicans and Driving Miss Daisy.

Mary Campbell’s alter ego is Sister Alma Rose, whose blog may be found at http://almarose.wordpress.com. Mary’s dream, at the moment, is for Vince Gill and Amy Grant to record one of her songs….

Her heroes are her children: Marian, Jack, and Eli. And her sister, Pipi, and brother, John. And her nieces, Paige and Chris. And Paul, Adam, and Kurt. And especially Melba and Dan Campbell. Hi, Mom and Dad! Am I doing okay?

Here’s a secret: She wrote the song “For the Brave,” spontaneously, in about an hour, words and music, unpremeditated, on August 28, 2001—two weeks before Nine Eleven.